Formula 1: FIA slams Max Verstappen for saying safety car is slow as a turtle: The reigning Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen has been slammed by FIA after his comments on the speed of the safety car. Follow Formula 1 Live Updates on InsideSport.IN.
Defending world champion Verstappen said the safety car is as slow as a turtle during the Australian Grand Prix. He was not alone, as a number of drivers expressed their anger at the speed of the Aston Martin safety car.
Formula 1: FIA SLAMS Max Verstappen for saying ‘Safety Car is SLOW as a TURTLE’, releases statement – Check OUT
Max Verstappen described the safety car as a ‘Turtle’, as its lack of pace at the front resulted in the temperatures of the tyres dropping too much. “There’s so little grip and also the safety car was driving so slow. It was like a turtle. Unbelievable. To drive 140 km/h on the back straight, there was not a damaged car. So I don’t understand why we have to drive so slowly. We have to investigate,” the Red Bull driver stated.
“For sure the Mercedes safety car is faster because of the extra aero. Because this Aston Martin is really slow. It definitely needs more grip, because our tyres were stone cold. It’s pretty terrible the way we are driving behind the safety car at the moment,” Verstappen further added.
Formula 1: FIA SLAMS Max Verstappen for saying ‘Safety Car is SLOW as a TURTLE’, releases statement – Check OUT
The FIA does not believe that the speed disparity between the Mercedes and Aston Martin safety vehicles is a problem. The safety car’s priority, according to a statement posted on Twitter by motor racing’s governing body, is to assist officials in keeping the race going in a safe way, not how fast it goes.
FIA Statement on @F1 Safety Car pic.twitter.com/5p0uHGo6mu
— FIA (@fia) April 14, 2022
The statement read, “In light of recent comments regarding the pace of the FIA Formula 1 Safety Car, the FIA would like to reiterate that the primary function of the FIA Formula 1 Safety Car is, of course, not outright speed, but the safety of the drivers, marshals, and officials.”
“The safety car procedures take into account multiple objectives. Depending upon the incident in question. Including the requirement to ‘bunch up’ the field. Negotiate an incident recovery or debris on the track in a safe manner. And adjust the pace depending on recovery activities that may be ongoing in a different part of the track,” it further went on to read.
Formula 1: FIA SLAMS Max Verstappen for saying ‘Safety Car is SLOW as a TURTLE’, releases statement – Check OUT
Meanwhile, Max Verstappen had a race to forget in Australia as he had to retire his car with was a fuel leak issue. He also retired his car in the season opener in Bahrain Grand Prix after having a fuel pump issue.
Formula 1: FIA SLAMS Max Verstappen for saying ‘Safety Car is SLOW as a TURTLE’, releases statement – Check OUT
